C40 Reinventing Cities, a competition that is part of Milan’s strategic plan to transform underused railway areas on the site of a former freight terminal, recently selected L’INNESTO as its winning project.
The L’INNESTO project area spans 62,000 sm and comprises three parts: the former railway station next to the Greco-Pirelli station, a green area on Via Breda Street, and an abandoned track overlooking the west of theBicocca district.
Upon completion, L’INNESTO will be Italy’s first carbon-neutral social housing project. The project will use a fourth generation district heating system connected to the neighborhood and powered by on-site renewable sources. With a target of 60% green space, L’INNESTO will limit space for cars and prioritize bike parking, electric car charging terminals, and a shared neighborhood car fleet. The design also includes a Human Adaptive Zone, a collaborative neighborhood with an agricultural heart. Rainwater will be 100% reused, which will save 30% on drinking water consumption. 15% of wastewater is treated directly on site.
The project’s CO2 balance sheet takes into account the construction and the following 30 years of management. L’INNESTO has been designed to achieve a zero balance throughout its life cycle.
The project was proposed by a team including: Fondo Immobiliare Lombardia, InvestiRE SGR (manager), Barreca & La Varra (architect and landscape design), Arup Italia (urban and environmental design), and Stantec (site remediation, wastewater and rainwater management).
Related Stories
| Apr 2, 2013
Green building consultant explores the truth about green building performance in new book
A new book from leading sustainability, green building author and expert Jerry Yudelson challenges assumptions about the value of sustainable design and environmentally-friendly buildings.
| Mar 29, 2013
Stanford researchers develop nanophotonic panel that reflects sun's heat out of the atmosphere
Researchers at Stanford University have developed a nanophotonic material that not only reflects sunlight, but actually beams the thermal energy out of the earth's atmosphere.
| Mar 27, 2013
Small but mighty: Berkeley public library’s net-zero gem
The Building Team for Berkeley, Calif.’s new 9,500-sf West Branch library aims to achieve net-zero—and possibly net-positive—energy performance with the help of clever passive design techniques.
| Mar 22, 2013
Earn $500 as a DOE proposal reviewer
The DOE'S Building Technologies Office this morning put out a call to the AEC industry for expert reviewers for its new energy-efficiency initiative for small commercial buildings, which make up more than 90% of the commercial building stock.
| Mar 21, 2013
Best Firms to Work For: Enermodal Engineering is green to the core
At Enermodal Engineering, there’s only one kind of building—a sustainable one.
| Mar 19, 2013
New LEED for Neighborhood Development and Historic Preservation guide released
A new guidance manual, LEED for Neighborhood Development and Historic Preservation, outlines strategies geared towards helping building teams incorporate historic resources into their developments.
| Mar 14, 2013
25 cities with the most Energy Star certified buildings
Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Chicago top EPA's list of the U.S. cities with the greatest number of Energy Star certified buildings in 2012.
| Mar 10, 2013
Walgreens to build first net-zero energy retail store
Walgreens announced plans last week to build one of the nation's first net-zero retail stores. The Evanston, Ill., location will utilize solar panels, wind turbines, geothermal technology, LED lighting and ultra-high-efficiency refrigeration to produce energy equal to or greater than the building consumes.
| Feb 28, 2013
Greeening Silicon Valley: Samsung's new 1.1 million-sf HQ
Samsung Electronics' new 1.1 million sf San Jose campus will support at least 2,500 sales and R&D staff in the company's semiconductor and display businesses.